Hc Factsheet

hemoCORM

Company FactSheet

Innovative medicine: Novel carbon monoxide-releasing molecules with therapeutic potential

Management: Chief Executive Dr Philip Ledger Scientific Founders Dr Roberto Motterlini Prof Brian Mann Prof Colin Green Chairman Prof Colin Green Commercial Manager Paul Purcell For information:

Factsheet_8 Sep 2006 © Hemocorm Ltd 2006

Dr Philip Ledger Tel: +44 (0) 7768 217 607 [email protected] or Paul Purcell NPIMR - TT Block Watford Road Harrow, Middx HA1 3UJ United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) 20 8869 3287 [email protected]

Overview hemoCORM Ltd is a London based company that has established a leading position in an exciting and emerging pharmacological field. The company is developing a novel class of therapeutic agents: compounds that release carbon monoxide (CO) under defined conditions. The compounds have been developed following the discovery that CO, like nitric oxide, is a naturally occurring chemical messenger that, in physiological doses, has anti-inflammatory, hypotensive and anti-apoptotic properties and can suppress graft rejection and protect tissues from ischemic damage. hemoCORM’s technology As research into the pharmacological effects of CO progressed through the 90’s, so its therapeutic potential became apparent. hemoCORM’s scientists recognised that any therapeutic benefit to be derived from CO could rarely be efficiently achieved by delivering the molecule as a gas, which is inconvenient and potentially unsafe to store and administer. Their solution to the problem came in the identification of several groups of inorganic molecules able to release CO under physiological conditions. Development stage Prototype molecules have been modified to increase water-solubility and decrease toxicity, and the new forms are active in a number of model systems. hemoCORM and its collaborators have shown that CO-RMs can induce beneficial pharmacological effects otherwise obtainable with CO (gas). Compounds are being screened for biological properties and optimized for CO release prior to confirmation of lead candidates. Most lab work is currently performed at hemoCORM’s parent institutions. There is an additional chemistry collaboration at the University of Zurich and projects are outsourced to commercial providers. Over 10 international groups are actively using CO-RMs under MTAs.

Therapeutic focus CO-RMs have shown activity in numerous in vitro and in vivo preclinical models (list of publications available on request). hemoCORM’s current development focus is in transplantation, and the protection of tissues from ischaemic damage (e.g. after myocardial infarction or angioplasty). These represent significant, growing markets, in which there is great demand for new active substances. Mechanism of action The activity of hemoCORM’s compounds is consistent with their primary effects being caused by the release of CO. The best characterised receptor for CO is guanylate cyclase. Direct activities on K-ion channels and CO-responsive transcription factors have also been reported, and some biological effects of CO apparently involve the MAPK and Hif-1/hypoxia pathways. Intellectual property hemoCORM controls a family of patents and patent applications covering the composition of matter of CO-RMs and their pharmaceutical use, including the granted US patent US7045140. Company history hemoCORM was spun-out from the Northwick Park Institute for Medical Research, London, and the University of Sheffield, based on IP developed by scientists in those institutions. The company’s founders are Professor Colin Green, Dr Roberto Motterlini (both NPIMR), and Professor Brian Mann (University of Sheffield). Professor Green, the Director of NPIMR, has an international reputation in transplantation surgery; Dr Motterlini is a worldrecognised expert in the biology of the heme oxygenase/CO pathway, and Professor Mann is a recognised expert on metal carbonyls and organometallic chemistry. In February 2005 and again in January 2006, hemoCORM received investment from a private source that has enabled it to develop new CORMs, and evaluate them in a in a range of animal models, including renal transplantation.

Highlights  

hemoCORM is the first commercial player in a novel and growing field We have a strong IP position and scientific foundation

Strategy and partnering opportunities   

hemoCORM is seeking to have additional funding in place by early 2007, and invites enquiries from corporate investors and VCs . Technology evaluation and collaborative research with big pharma is being explored. Small and mid-sized partners with complementary technologies are invited to discuss collaborations.